


Workplace Safety

by misura



Category: Marvel Her-Oes
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-24
Updated: 2018-06-24
Packaged: 2019-05-27 22:54:28
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,183
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15035126
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/misura/pseuds/misura
Summary: Namora decides to grace Jenny's workplace with her presence.





	Workplace Safety

A mere five minutes ( _five minutes!_ ) after Namora had arrived ("As I am not an employee, I fail to see why I should get out of bed _early_ ,"), Jenny knew that this was not going to end well.

True, she'd known it from the moment Namora had suggested that they spend more time together, only back then, she'd been capable of telling herself that maybe she was wrong.

Namora sighed. Loudly.

Jenny determinedly ignored her and returned a couple of books, pretending to have forgotten that she'd done so already. (The ever helpful computer reminded her by flashing an error message in bright red letters, which Jenny hastily clicked away.)

It still being early, and the weekend, there were no students around whatsoever. The library was nice and quiet, which was just the way Jenny liked it. Peaceful. Free from stimuli or irritants.

_Well, aside from the one leaning against my desk._

Namora sighed again.

_You're the one who wanted to be here._ "What?" Jenny snapped. She was a bit surprised at her own tone. _Oh, come on. I'm not going to turn green because my girlfriend is_ sighing _._

"While I understand the theory of working an inconspicuous day job to aid in preserving one's secret identity, I feel as if you might be overdoing it a bit. Does _anything_ more exciting than the computer telling you when you attempt to return an already returned book ever happen?"

_Maybe if you stuck around for more than five minutes, you might find out for yourself._ Not that Jenny expected any excitement later on the day. The lack of excitement was why she'd chosen this job, after all - _well, and I like books. Reading. People keeping to themselves._

"You want to leave, you know where the exit is," Jenny said.

_You want a nice, boring life, you know you should maybe pick a nice, boring girlfriend._ Well, at least she wasn't snapping anymore.

Namora sniffed. "What would be the point in _that_? This place would still be as mind-numbingly boring without me as it is with me. More so, in fact."

"Yes." _Calm, Jenny. Deep, even breaths._ "Has it occurred to you that perhaps that's the appeal? That maybe I _like_ boring?"

Namora's eyes glinted. "I trust that's not intended as an insult."

Jenny shrugged. "Boring, I like. You, I love. Or hate. It depends on the moment."

"Acceptable," Namora said, after a moment's consideration. "Passion is good, in a relationship such as ours."

_Is that so? Then where's_ your _passion, Namora?_ Somehow, Jenny didn't really feel 'getting up at ten on a Saturday morning to join one's girlfriend in the library in order to insult her job' qualified as 'passionate'. _On the other hand, do I even want to know?_

"So glad you're not going to break up with me because of my boring job."

Namora waved airily. "I told you, it's quite common and perfectly acceptable to act the dullard in order to keep one's enemies from discovering one's true identity. No one in my family would judge you."

Jenny felt oddly warmed by the unspoken 'or else' at the end of that sentence. On the other hand: "I'm not going to get into a fight with your family just so they can see the other me."

Namora looked mildly shocked. "Well, not all of them at the same time, naturally."

Jenny closed her eyes and recited the alphabet backwards.

Namora put a hand on her arm. "See? You should be seeking out excitement on your own terms, not hide away behind dusty books and equipment that was outdated ten years ago."

"Excuse _you_. I'll have you know - "

"You want more control over your own life, you have to work for it," Namora went on, ignoring her. "Sure, you may level a few buildings, unroot a few trees, even demolish a car, but so what? It's a learning process."

Jenny blinked. "So _what_? Are you crazy?"

"Well, not _my_ car, by preference," Namora said. "Still, if I were to explain the circumstances, I'm sure I would be allotted the funds to buy a new one."

Jenny rolled her eyes. "Why did I even bother asking?" (She wasn't annoyed, though, she noticed. Exasperated, sure, but not annoyed. Not struggling to stay in control.)

"Your true form is a thing of magnificence, ferocity and beauty," Namora said. "What's a car compared to that?"

_My true form scares the hell out of people, including me._ "Should I leave the two of you alone in a room together to talk about your feelings sometime?" _Not that I can think of any room deserving that fate._

Namora sighed. _Third time's the charm._ "I am merely pointing out that if you wish for control, it's better to expose yourself to situations testing that control than to avoid them."

"Dating you doesn't count as exposing myself to uncontrollable situations?" _It certainly test my patience, to say nothing of making me question my sanity._

"Being allowed to refer to me as your girlfriend is a great privilege. You should feel honored that out of all humans I might have chosen for my companion, I chose you. Jenny Walters, librarian."

_Ooh, boy. Where do I even_ start _?_ Jenny stared at Namora, hoping a look might count as the proverbial picture that was worth a thousand words. _Such as: arrogant, conceited, full of herself -_

"That was a joke," Namora said. Jenny breathed out. "You couldn't tell?"

"Um." _How do I put this?_ "Sorry. It's still pretty early, and we stayed up pretty late last night."

"Ah. Well, I suppose it hardly matters if you fall asleep on this job. Though I confess that I had hoped for an opportunity to avail ourselves of the privacy afforded by this location."

"I'm the assistant librarian. I don't - " Jenny felt herself flush.

"After opening hours, then?" Namora suggested. "I understand some of the appeal comes from the negligible risk of getting caught, but ... "

"No," said Jenny.

"No?" Namora cocked her head, eyes narrowed.

Jenny felt her resolve get just a little bit crumble-y. "No, I'm not going to make out with you in the library. Not when it's open, and not when it's closed. What's wrong with snuggling on a comfortable couch in front of the TV with a bowl of popcorn or fish sticks or whatever weird snack your cousin put in the fridge for you to enjoy as a sample of human food?"

"Oh." Namora sighed for the fourth time since Jenny had started counting. "Very well. If that's how you feel on the matter, I imagine I might as well leave now."

_I should be overjoyed, and yet, I do believe my feelings are hurt._

"Alternately, as there are no students demanding your attention and supervision just yet, why don't you show me around and tell me a bit more about what it is you do around here?"

"Why don't I?" Jenny put down the books before she'd try returning them a third time.

_Nope, still don't see how this can end well. Still, I guess at least we're both willing to try._


End file.
